FDA To Extend Compliance Date For Certain Vending Machine Calorie Disclosures

On July 8, 2016, the FDA announced that it is extending the compliance date for final calorie declaration requirements for certain food products sold from vending machines from December 1, 2016, to July 26, 2018. The final rule, which appeared in the December 1, 2014, Federal Register, applies to certain food from vending machines operated by operators with 20 or more machines and requires information to be displayed so prospective purchasers can examine an item's calorie content before purchasing it. The FDA granted the extension for glass-front vending machines after several trade associations requested it, arguing it would be helpful to have a compliance date that aligns with the recently published nutrition facts label final rule. The extension will allow companies to make all changes to their food labels, including front-of-pack ("FOP") calorie information, at one time. FDA is also extending the compliance date for certain gums, mints, and roll candy sold in vending machines in response to industry requests to provide flexibility for labeling these products.

The extension applies only to foods sold from glass-front vending machines that have visible FOP labeling. If packaged food sold in glass-front vending machines does not have visible FOP labeling, the calorie disclosures will have to appear in, on, or adjacent to the vending machine consistent with the requirements in the final rule by December 1, 2016. The December 2016 compliance date also still applies to vending machines that use electronic displays or sell unpackaged products.

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